About Marko Mäetamm

Domestic life and family responsibilities provide the fuel for Marko Mäetamm’s darkly humorous paintings, videos, and installations. He regards the family as a microcosm of larger societal structures and presents domesticity as both a comfort and a trap. Mäetamm’s works are based on his experiences as a husband and father of two children, as well as his struggle to balance his ambitions as an artist with the need to provide for his family. Taking cues from comic books and cartoons, he structures his paintings and videos as comic strips, evoking a tone that is both confessional and absurd. Mäetamm expresses boredom, rage, depression, guilt, and love in works featuring bleeding mansions, murderous fathers, sexual dissatisfaction, and neglected children—subjects somewhat softened by the cartoonish renderings and humor. The artist represented Estonia at the 50th and 52nd Venice Biennales.